By Euronews Persian
Published on •Updated
The US has rejected claims by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that its forces destroyed an American early-warning radar in Bahrain.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Friday that the IRGC had launched two one-way attack drones towards Bahrain and that both had been shot down by US forces.
“There were no injuries or damage,” it said.
The Guard’s aerospace force fighters had reportedly launched a strike in response to an attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik County in southern Iran on Thursday.
The IRGC said in a statement that the strike was a “serious warning” to Washington “to put an end to its aerial provocations and oil smuggling in the Strait of Hormuz,” per the Fars news agency.
It added that its forces were on “full alert and ready to respond without geographical limits” should “such violations and acts of aggression” happen again.
Bahrain hosts the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, which plays an important role in maintaining Washington’s naval operations in the Persian Gulf and surrounding waters.
CENTCOM said on Wednesday that American forces were continuing to “work around the clock keeping the Strait of Hormuz open for commercial shipping” while also “strictly enforcing the ironclad naval blockade against Iran.”
According to CENTCOM, around 1.7 billion barrels of crude oil have passed through the strategic strait under US protection since the summer.
The latest confrontation comes as US President Donald Trump has taken an increasingly hard line against Iran.
Trump said on Thursday that Washington no longer needed an agreement with Iran and asked Vice President JD Vance, who had played a role in diplomatic efforts, to focus on domestic issues at home.
Trump also said that Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain had asked him to postpone broader attacks against the country.
Despite rising military tensions, diplomatic efforts mediated by Qatar and Pakistan are continuing. Tehran has made any resumption of formal negotiations with Washington conditional on its demands being met, including the lifting of sanctions, an end to the naval blockade of Iranian ports, the release of frozen assets and a halt to the war on all fronts.